A Second Chance
by cyber viper42
Summary: Sasuke sent Naruto back in time, but accidently was sent back with him. Now in their academy days, how will these two cope with their new situation. Will they try to kill eachother all over again? Full summary inside. INDEFINITE HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note:**

**This is my first Naruto fanfic. I know that the general idea is not new, so please, no flames. Also I would like to know what pairings you would like to see. **_**I will not do a**_** Sasuke/Naruto or something like that. Keep it boy girl PLEASE. I would also like some input on how long you feel a chapter should be. I love long stories, but I can't find the time to write long chapters. My last attempt burned me out after 6 chapters and 26,000 words.**

**I'm rambling, but I'll try to keep this brief. I'm not sure what kind of new and original elements I can add to a genre that has been so thoroughly explored. (over 180,000 fanfics is amazing.) **

**Summary: **

Sasuke sees Kubified Naruto about to eliminate Pein, but also the rest of the elemental nations in a last ditch attack and he does the only thing he can do; a space-time warp to the past. Now back in their pre-Genin days, how will Naruto and Sasuke cope with new challenges and burden of knowing the future? Will they change the past to reshape the future they just came from, or will they tear apart the past in an effort to finish the other off?

"normal speech"

_Thoughts_

**Biju speech**

_**Biju thoughts**_

Chapter One: A Fresh Start

Naruto growled…or rather the Kyuubi growled as he faced Pein. The real Pein. The rain poured down soaking the leader of Atasuski, while the Kyuubi's unnatural chakra evaporated the water as soon as it touched the swirling mass of red. Pein jumped back and settled onto a building that rose above the rest of the Hidden Village of the Rain to put some distance between himself and the Biju host.

Surprisingly the Kyuubi also jumped back and not surprisingly, powered up a new attack. To those witnessing the battle gaped in awe at this new attack. The Kyuubi compacted a huge portion of it's chakra into a tight ball which turned almost pure black. That was not all. Rather than swallow the chakra and blast it at Pein, a blue aura surrounded the attack, swirling not too much unlike the Rasengan. Suddenly fire, lighting, wind, water and finally earth formed into orbits around the black center, rotating ever faster.

Sasuke couldn't help but feel the power of the upcoming attack. Even miles away the chakra build up could be sensed. _Damn it! I need to more FASTER!_ Sasuke's urgency and anger threatened to overwhelm him as he surged forward pushing his body to the limit. Nothing would stop him of exacting his revenge on Pein. Pein had destroyed Konoha; the very thing that Sasuke wanted to do after completing his avenger role and killing Itachi. _No one gets in the way of my revenge and lives._

Sasuke arrived at the battle field in time to witness the Kyuubi bracing itself for the kick-back of its attack. It planted all nine tails deeply into the ground and crouched as if preparing to spring on an unsuspecting mouse. With the Mangekyo Sharingan activated, Sasuke darted forward and cast his jutsu. "SpaceTime Warpfield!" (This is the one Madra Uses on Shino's bugs in the manga)

Instantly he knew something was wrong. He saw the Kyuubi sucked into the field, but HE was going with it. _Shit, Shit, SHIT! This isn't supposed to happen!_ Sasuke felt his entire body stretch and move under the effect of the jutsu. Try as he might, he couldn't cancel the move. It was going to take him down with him. All of a sudden he blacked out…

Naruto woke up with a groan. _Where am I?_ He asked himself groggily. He rolled out of bed and hit the floor with an alarming thump. _What the hell? Since when did the world get so much bigger._ He carefully sat himself upright and leaned against his bed like he used to do…_That's it!_ He knew this place looked familiar. _Is this a dream? _Naruto shook his head. _My forehead protector is gone! _He realized in a flash as he missed the familiar weight against his forehead.

"Something just isn't right." He moaned. "I was fighting Pein and the the Kyuubi came out and…and…" He trailed off as he realized he couldn't remember anything after he had relinquished control to the Biju. _Did I faint? _He asked himself. _No…If I fainted I would have ended up by his cage._ Naruto quickly folded his legs and closed his eyes as he prepared to talk with the Kyuubi. He felt himself slip into the cold waters of the underground labyrinth that was his sub-conscious. Before him stood the metal cage door with the familiar seal still on it. He peered into the depths of the cage and shouted, "Hey Demon! You there?"

Almost instantly a pair of red eyes opened. A pair of harsh, fiery eyes that belonged to the nine tailed demon fox; the Kyuubi no Yoko. **"What do you want brat?"** The Kyuubi growled.

"Oi! You know what the heck happened to us?" Naruto demanded. "I mean one moment we were fighting Pein, the next I'm waking up as if I was in the academy."

**"You mean to tell me you didn't feel that accursed Sharingan pull us into a vortex?" **Naruto blinked at the Kyuubi's question. **"Let it suffice to say that we have been sent back in time."** The demon fox let this information seep into his host.

"You mean Sasuke did this?" Naruto asked looking up at the fox for confirmation.

**"Yes…"** The Kyuubi hissed. **"Unfortunately for him, he was sucked in with us. Apparently he hasn't perfected the technique."**

"So are you telling me that we're stuck here with an over-powered Uchiha and to top it all off, we're both like 12 years old and in the academy?" Naruto summed up the situation.

**"Like it or not, you are going to have to repeat your life." **The Kyuubi replied.

"If I'm back in the past, why do I still have my memories?" Naruto asked the ancient beast.

**"Probably an error in the technique," **The Kyuubi mused. **"Since he was new with his Mangekyo Sharingan, he hasn't mastered it. That margin of error could possibly account for your retained memories."**

"So what skills do I still have?" Naruto asked yet another question, annoying the demon.

**"You'll have to find that out yourself." **The Kyuubi retreated to the far reaches of its cave. **"I'm taking a nap."**

Sasuke woke up similarly to Naruto with a pounding headache. His eyesight was foggy, but that cleared away as he blinked his eyes. Looking around, he found himself in his room inside the Uchiha compound. He hadn't lived there since just after Itachi. _Is everyone still alive?_ He quickly stood up, causing his vision to blur and head to spin, but he gritted his teeth and walked to the door to his room trying to ignore the pain. He stumbled out of the room as if he tripped on the doorway to find the house completely quiet. _No one's here. They're all gone._ Memories of that terrible night leapt into his vision unbidden and unwanted. _Why do I have my memories? If I went back in time, I shouldn't have them._ Cursing his weakness, he chided himself on getting caught in the warp field in the first place. _I should have been stronger. I should have been able to control IT!_

He wandered around the compound staring at the old sights, talking in the morning air, he searched for a calendar. _It wouldn't look good if I didn't show up the academy. That would be a sign of weakness._ He walked into a bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. The curse seal was gone and he wasn't wearing a forehead protector. He tried to look at the old him and accept reality; the reality that he was stuck in the past, stuck with the prospect of regaining all of his powers all over again. Almost on a whim, a last thread of hope, Sasuke closed his eyes and tried to activate his Sharingan. When he opened his eyes, a rare smile broke out. He still had the Sharingan!

The Third hokage woke up with a start. He had without a doubt sensed an enormous Chakra spike. It had sent a shiver down his spine as he recalled a similar feeling 12 years previous when the nine tailed fox had attacked the village. He needed to find Naruto and talk with him.

But something still wasn't quite right he had felt the Kyuubi's evil chakra, but it felt suppressed by a different power. A power he had felt awaken when Itachi murdered his entire clan with the single exception of his younger brother, Sasuke. He would have to talk with both of the young boys today. He sighed, life never was fair, but it was never this cruel. So much for a pleasant day.

Naruto quickly re-adjusted to his old life style, and was soon devouring cup ramen that he found in a cabinet. If he was stuck in the past, he might as well make life a little better and train his tail off. Naruto was fairly comfortable with the Kage Bushin as he had just created ten clones to clean up his apartment. _I'll have to wait for after class to test the Rasengan_. He thought to himself and slurped up the soup from the ramen. Not even bothering to throw the remains of his meal into the trash, Naruto walked over the nearest wall and placed one foot on it. After a second of concentrating he cautiously lifted his other foot off the ground and walked up his wall and hung from the ceiling.

Naruto grinned at the up-side-down world. "Oh yeah! I can still walk on walls!" his voice rang through the early morning startling several birds which took off from their perch below his window. Naruto started to do a little jig while still attached to his ceiling, yet quickly wound up on the floor in a heap. "Oww!" he groaned and rubbed the back of his head. What clones he still had dispelled as his concentration slipped, canceling the justu.

He slowly shuffled his way back into his room and pulled out his orange jumpsuit. _I used to wear this thing?_ Naruto asked himself. _Oh well, it's all I got. _He shrugged on the orange contraption and set off for the academy. His walk wasn't long. He didn't live that far away from the ninja school, and it didn't take more than five minutes to walk there. As he entered the grounds, he spied the Uchiha entering the building just as the Uchiha spotted him. Their eyes locked and chakra flared.

**Alright, I know that that wasn't a very long chapter. I will get better. I've got a lot of ideas to cram into the next year of their lives. Please tell me what pairings you like. Right now I'm thinking Naruto/Hinata and Sakura/Sasuke.**

**Please Review. I want to know how I did.**

**-Cyberviper42**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**

**Hello everybody! Cyberviper42 here. Just want to thank those of you who reviewed. It means a lot to me. Thanks for the input. I just want to clear a few things up. When I mentioned that Sasuke had the Sharingan, that's what I meant. If I meant the Mangekyo Sharingan, I would have said that. It's just more that Sasuke has to regain. **

**Thank you for telling me the parings that you wanted!!! Although I don't really see Naruto and Sakura getting together in the manga or anime, and with Hinata's confession to Naruto in the manga**

**Now on to the story!!!**

"normal speech"

_Thoughts_

**Biju speech**

_**Biju thoughts**_

**Chapter 2: What Was That?**

_As Naruto entered the grounds, he spied the Uchiha entering the building just as the Uchiha spotted him. Their eyes locked and their chakras flared._

As quickly as Sasuke had powered up, he suppressed his chakra and sighed. _It won't do to attract attention just yet. _He glared at Naruto with his usual empty eyes and the orange clad ninja glared back with piercing blue eyes. Cautiously, Naruto approached Sasuke and stood just out of arm's reach. "Yo, Dobe." Sasuke prodded, "You know I want to pound your but into the ground."

"It's mutual Sasuke," Naruto replied coolly. "Though I think that we both need training; lots of it."

"Dobe, we're stuck here good." Sasuke admitted. "All I want to do is regain my strength. I don't care what I have to do to get it back." Naruto looked uneasy at Sasuke's words. He knew that you got the Mangekyo Sharingan from killing a person close to you.

_I hope he doesn't mean he wants to kill me._ Thought Naruto.

"…However I do need someone to constantly measure myself against.

"…" Sasuke was silent for a moment. "We'll train together so when I'm as strong as I used to be, I'll be able to measure myself." It wasn't a question. It was a command and a statement.

Naruto grinned at his former teammate. "Truce then?" he asked putting out a hand.

Sasuke stared at the hand. "Feh, whatever dobe." He said as he turned and walked down the hall but stopped at the corner, staring back at Naruto. "Aren't you coming?" he asked.

Naruto grinned again. He knew that this was the way Sasuke was. They would put their differences aside and train. Naruto ran past Sasuke and yelled back over his shoulder. "Race ya!!" Scowling, Sasuke dashed after Naruto, intent on being first.

­

Iruka Sensei looked out over his class. Two students were missing. One of them shouldn't have been. The other? Well he was expected to always be late or not even show up for class. Iruka sighed. He was about to begin his lecture when a commotion from the hall caught the attention from the students. He walked to the door and was about to open it when Naruto burst into the room, knocked into Iruka and fell in a heap of arms and legs. Sasuke appeared a fraction of a second later and simply walked around Naruto and Iruka before looking back and dragging Naruto to his feet.

"Baka…" Sasuke muttered mere moments before his fan girls swarmed around him, calling out his name. Sakura and Ino battled for a position to speak to their crush, yelling and hitting each other, not even noticing Sasuke and Naruto walk past them and sit next to each other. Everyone else raised their eyebrows at the unusual turn of events.

Naruto, sitting next to Sasuke? And they aren't fighting? Something was definitely up. Everyone knew it, yet no one made a move to whisper or comment.

By this time Ino and Sakura were bitterly fighting for the last seat next to Sasuke. For Naruto, all his childhood memories of the academy flooded back. It wasn't often that someone was actually able to re-live their past. He almost didn't notice Sasuke get up and stand next to him. "Switch with me." He muttered under his breath. Naruto looked up and quickly complied. If he sat in the middle and Sasuke on the end, there would be less of a squabble to sit next to him. Almost immediately Ino and Sakura began looking for seats near Sasuke. Shikamaru and Kiba were sitting behind the two time travelers. Hinata had been sitting next to them, but she quickly slipped into the vacant seat next to Naruto.

Iruka looked out at his class and sighed. It was the same routine every mourning. Ino and Sakura always fought for places next to Sasuke, but today's turn of events didn't look as bad as normal. Sasuke and Naruto were actually sitting calmly next to each other, Hinata had gotten the courage from somewhere to sit next to Naruto, and Ino and Sakura were forced to sit on opposite sides of the room. Today was actually looking up for him. He cleared his throat and quickly knocked Kiba, Shikamaru, and Naruto as he started his lecture. He couldn't help but notice that Sasuke wasn't paying as much attention. _That is definitely strange. He usually just absorbs everything._

The Third Hokage of Konoha couldn't concentrate on the piles of paperwork before him. Mission requests, taxes, census reports, bills. Everything seemed to pass through his office if it concerned the village in any way, shape, or form. He sighed, almost giving up but it was his duty to finish the paper work. _Maybe after a brief walk I'll feel better. _The old man told himself. He was still worried about the Chakra spike he had felt earlier that morning.

-Flashback-

_The Third hokage woke up with a start. He had without a doubt sensed an enormous Chakra spike. It had sent a shiver down his spine as he recalled a similar feeling 12 years previous when the nine tailed fox had attacked the village. He needed to find Naruto and talk with him._

_But something still wasn't quite right he had felt the Kyuubi's evil chakra, but it felt suppressed by a different power. A power he had felt awaken when Itachi murdered his entire clan with the single exception of his younger brother, Sasuke. He would have to talk with both of the young boys today._

-End flashback-

_I'll go speak with the boys. _He decided. _That'll help be relax after this paperwork._ The Third slowly stood up, grabbed his pipe and walked slowly, yet calmly and nimbly from his office.

Iruka was trying to wrap up his lecture with the remainder of the class awake. A few of the other young boys had followed Naruto's example and fell asleep. Granted it was halfway through when they lost consciousness, but still; it bugged him when they did it. _Maybe they want something a little more active._ Iruka decided to abandon the remainder of his lesson and quickly herded the young ninja-to-be out into the courtyard.

"Alright class, pay attention." He called out. "Right now we are going to try something advanced." Everyone but Sasuke and Naruto looked excited. _They are usually the most excited about learning something advanced. Something is definitely wrong with them._ "We are going to learn how to walk up trees." Everyone cheered except for the duo. "Walking up a tree requires a lot of chakra control. All you have to do is you're your chakra into your feet. Too much and you fly off, too little and you don't stick. Don't be upset if you can't do this properly. Even Genin have trouble with it."

Iruka looked out over the class. "Naruto, why don't you give it a try?" Everyone laughed. They knew Naruto sucked at chakra control. They wanted to see him fail at something.

"Yah, sure," Naruto said casually, "whatever you say Iruka-sensei." He walked to the tree Iruka was standing next to and placed one foot on the trunk. Everyone tensed up expecting failure but was shocked when Naruto easily walked up the tree until he reached a branch about twice as high as he was tall and hung up-side-down from it using chakra pulsing through his feet.

Iruka gaped at the young blond. _How the hell did he do that? _Iruka asked himself. _Naruto has the worst chakra control of the class. How did he manage to do that?_ Iruka was even more surprised when Sasuke appeared next to Naruto hanging from the same branch in the same position.

"Feh. Don't start feeling special dobe." Sasuke said. "You aren't the only one who can do this."

"True," Naruto replied. "But can you do this?" Naruto reached up with one finger and glued it to the branch with chakra and let his feet slid off. Now hanging from only one finger, Naruto grinned at Sasuke, Iruka and the rest of the class. The class was shocked to say the least. Naruto was the worst student here, and he had completely mastered a new exercise in one try.

"Oi!" Kiba exclaimed. "If Naruto can do it, so can I!" he resolutely walked up to the tree and tried to walk up it like he saw Naruto do moments earlier. Instead he found himself sprawled out at the base of the tree, almost having done a split. "…So…close…" Kiba's weak words caused the entire class to break down laughing.

Shikamaru sighed and continued to stare at the clouds. "How troublesome…"

Iruka had the rest of his class try to climb up the tree. Hinata was too nervous, Ino wasn't strong enough, Kiba was incapacitated after his try, only Sakura made any progress up the tree before loosing her concentration a few steps up the trunk. Having Sasuke nearby didn't help as it made her slightly nervous.

Sasuke stared at the young female ninja. Sakura did turn out to be an insanely strong shinobi, and she was attractive…_If I get caught up with her, she will pull me down._ Sasuke reprimanded himself inside his head while his eyes followed the pink haired girl around the school ground.

"Go for it teme." Naruto whispered to the raven-haired next to him on the branch.

Sasuke shot the blond a death glare and returned to staring passively at the class. "…"

"She'd do whatever you asked." Naruto stated. "It would strengthen our Genin team." Naruto sighed. _Sasuke is only interested in power._ "She'd be glad to get stronger to help us train." Naruto didn't like what he was about to say. "We could use her to not only strengthen ourselves, but make Chuunin on our first try." Sasuke had devoted his whole attention to Naruto. "That would open up huge opportunities to learn higher and more powerful Justus. Think about it."

"Fine. I'll talk to her and see if she wants to train with us." Sasuke relented seeing some logic behind Naruto's words. With that he let go of the tree and swiftly made his way over the Sakura.

"Hah! Eat that Ino-pig!" Sakura said to Ino's face. "I was able to do what Sasuke could and you couldn't. You don't deserve him."

"As if fore-head girl." Ino retorted. "You just got lucky. The next time I go, I'll go as high as Sasuke." At exactly this moment Sasuke tapped Sakura on the shoulder. Surprised, Sakura was about to punch whomever was behind her, when Ino cried out. "Sasuke-kun! You don't want her-She's ugly." Ino posed for Sasuke. "I'm much better looking."

"No," Sasuke replied. "I want to speak with Sakura…Alone." His voice dropped with the last word carrying with it a hint of malice. Ino got the picture, and backed away pouting, while Sakura gleamed as she followed Sasuke across the training field. Stopping out of earshot from the class, Sasuke turned around and looked at Sakura. "Let me say this as simply as I can." Sakura tensed expecting Sasuke to admit his feelings for her or something along those lines.

"Naruto and I need another training partner." Sasuke stated. "You have to potential to become very strong, and it would also give the three of us teamwork training."

"So you want me to help you train?" Sakura asked slightly disappointed, but far from unhappy. "I'll do it!"

"Good. Meet us at the Uchiha compound after school tomorrow." Sasuke commanded. Sasuke was about to tell the female ninja what to bring, but Naruto called him from across the yard.

"Oi! Sasuke!" Said Uchiha was slightly annoyed, but came returned to the branch Naruto was hanging from.

"What do you want Dobe?" he demanded.

"Old Man Jiji wants to talk with us for some reason." Naruto replied.

"Says who?" Sasuke asked.

"Says me." A voice from behind Sasuke startled him, nearly causing him to lose control and fall, but somehow he managed to remain firmly planted on the tree. Twisting around he saw the Third Hokage smiling at the two boys. "Hello you two." Turning his attention to Iruka he asked. "May I speak with them for a while?"

Iruka nodded his head. "Sure. They already completed today's class work, so they can go home after you're done with them." Iruka replied.

"Thank you." The Third turned his attention to the two boys again. "You are coming with me and explaining a few things." He turned around and walked away from the school with the two boys following close behind him.

Sakura couldn't stop bragging to Ino. "He wants ME to train with him." She smirked. "Eat that Ino-pig."

"Pish-posh." Ino replied. "Why would he want to train with a weakling like you? You can't even beat me in a match." The paused for a moment, and then continued. "He just wants to humiliate you."

"Nope! He wants me to train with him and Naruto." Sakura beamed at the thought of training with the best in their class.

"Oh really? With Naruto as well?" Ino replied. "In that case he's just tutoring the two of you so you don't fail the Genin exam miserably."

The two bickered back and forth until Hinata of all people broke them up. "N-Naturo-k-kun is strong." She said nervously. "H-he was able to do something that no one else could…except Sasuke." Hinata gulped for air and continued. "Something wasn't right with the two of them today. Naruto was able to do an advanced technique and Sasuke wasn't paying attention to Iruka-sensei in class." The two fan girls stopped their cat fight as they remembered Sasuke's vacant expression. Something that he rarely had in class.

"You think that something happened to the two of them?" Ino asked Hinata.

"Hai." The pupil-less girl replied.

"If Naruto harmed one hair on Sasuke's head…" Sakura began but Ino quickly interrupted her.

"No one could get past Sasuke's guard." Ino nearly shouted at Sakura. "He's so perfect, no one could touch him." As she swooned, the rest of the class left her standing in the school yard as they followed Iruka back into the academy.

The Third Hokage of Konoha stayed silent for the whole trip back to the Hokage manor. It was slightly awkward as the two boys didn't say anything either. They just dutifully followed him up through the levels and into his office. They stood before his desk and stared at him. He cleared his throat to snap them back to the present, or for them, the past.

"I'm not sure if you are aware of this or not, but this morning there was a huge chakra surge that lasted for a split second. I'm talking about levels that the Kyuubi no Yoko put out when he attacked the village." He stared that the boys expecting to see them surprised or concerned. Yet their faces remained blank, expressionless, and eerily calm. "So you knew about this?"

"Should we tell him Sasuke?" Naruto asked. "I think that we can trust him."

"Feh." Sasuke replied. "If that's what it takes to get out of this, do it. I just want to get back to real training."

"What is it that you want to tell me?" The old man asked.

"We're not weak academy students like you think we are." Sasuke answered. "I sent us here from the future." The Uchiha let that sink into the Third's head. "I was trying to stop Naruto and the Kyuubi from destroying the five elemental nations."

"Are you telling me that you two are from the future?" The Hokage asked unbelieving.

"Shall we prove it?" Naruto asked defiantly.

"Dobe how do you plan on doing that?" Sasuke asked.

"Do the Chidori." Naruto replied, shocking the Third. "I'll do a Kage Bushin and a Rasengan."

"Listen to me you two." The Third said trying to regain control of the situation. "I don't know where you heard about those techniques, but you can't do them. Chidori requires-"

"-Chakra nature manipulation…We know." Sasuke interrupted.

"And Rasengan is the Fourth's original technique and requires extreme shape manipulation." Naruto added.

"And you think you can do them?" The Hokage of Konoha asked. "They are extremely advanced."

"And so if we can do them, then there shouldn't be any reason to doubt our story." Naruto replied as he formed his favorite seal and yelled;"Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" immediately twenty Naruto clones appeared out of poofs of chakra smoke.

Sasuke went through the seals for the Chidori and focused his chakra into one of his braced hands, filling the room with the chirping of a thousand birds. The blue-white glow from his hands was quickly intensified as more chakra was pumped into the jutsu.

Meanwhile Naruto and one of his clones formed a Rasengan in the original's right palm. When it was finally completed, the clone disappeared in a cloud of chakra smoke. The two boys stood side by side and faced the Hokage with their respective attacks powered up.

"So you really are from the future…" The Hokage murmured and then gasped as Sasuke opened his eyes to reveal the activated Sharingan. (Author's Note: Remember this is the basic Sharingan, IT'S NOT THE MANGEKYO SHARINGAN!)

Kakashi was passing the hokage tower when he heard something that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up…the chirping of a thousand birds: the Chidori.

**Alright!!! Woot!! That was a nice long chapter! This is over 3,000 words!!!! A nice long chapter. Remember: I…LIKE…REVIEWS!!!!!**

**Please tell me how you think this story went. **

**Did you like the Sakura/Ino squables? **

**Naruto and Sasuke hanging upside-down in a tree with Kiba in a heap at the base?**

**Or maybe the Chidori, Sharingan, and Rasengan revelation at the end?**

**Please tell me what pairings you would like to see!**

**If I made a reference mistake or a continuity error, please tell me!!**

**Next Chapter: Training and the Flames of Youth**

**(I bet you know who's entering the story!!)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:**

**Hello everybody!!! How did you like that last chapter? Exciting? Interesting? **

**If you have any questions please let me know through a review. Remember if you have a question, there is probably someone else with the same question. I would love to clear up any confusion so everyone can enjoy the story.**

**Speaking of which:**

**-Naruto's Sage mode is basically about Chakra control from what I've gathered from the manga. He has to balance the chakra's properly or…poof. He's a stone frog. Even a Kage Bushin won't help him test it if he fails. Do you remember the toad sage telling Naruto that if one clone transforms, he will as well? **

**-I will consider a Naruto/Sakura and Sasuke/Hinata I've seen stories that have that and they're ligit combos that make sense. Sasuke and Hinata are both quiet, although for different reasons. Also Sakura and Naruto shared a lot of expreiances once Sasuke left in the anime and Manga. I'll consider these pairings.**

**-The Dragon Bard––––– I have a question for you. Where does the anime and/or manga mention Sasuke having a long-range Chidori? I don't remember anything like that. Can you tell me the manga chapter # or the anime episode?**

**I'd appreciate that.**

-**Panda87---- I don't really have an updating schedule I only update when I've got a new chapter, or about a weekish since my last update if i've got a new chapter  
**

**-On a side note, I'm glad that people liked the Sakura and Ino squabbles. One of the things that remains firmly planted in my memories of the academy were their constant bickering. **

**-On another side note, Remember how Naruto is told about the damage the Fuuton-Rasen-Shuriken does to his arm?? I don't think I'll have him use it just yet. Remember it's a killing move, saved for the utmost bad-guys. Naruto doesn't want to kill anyone.**

**Anyway…HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER**

**Enjoy.**

"normal speech"

_Thoughts_

**Biju speech**

_**Biju thoughts**_

Chapter 3: Training and the Flames of Youth.

_The Third Hokage stared at the two boys before him…both of them holding jutsus that even Jounin couldn't do. "So you really are from the future…" The Hokage murmured and then gasped as Sasuke opened his eyes to reveal the activated Sharingan._

Naruto and Sasuke left the Hokage tower side-by-side, grinning. They just shocked the old man so badly he had been left stuttering. Sasuke led Naruto to the Uchiha compound. It was on the opposite side of Konoha from Naruto's apartment. Their recent experience had helped to heal the rift between the two a little. Sasuke led Naruto down lonely streets where the Uchiha used to live until he stopped in front of the head family's mansion. Naruto's jaw dropped as he saw the size of the house. It looked even bigger because of a pond that the walls enclosed into the grounds.

"You lived here?" Naruto asked. "This place is huge!"

"After the massacre I only lived here for a month. I moved into an apartment and lived there ever since. I rarely went here unless I was training or looking for scrolls that contained better jutsus." Sasuke gazed at the mansion with mixed emotions rolling around inside of him. "I woke up here this morning."

"Eh?" Naruto said. "Why here? You hadn't lived here in years."

"I don't know…" Sasuke trailed off into silence. They stood there silent for a minute simply taking in the sight.

"So…You what to train?" Naruto asked grinning. Sasuke shrugged and walked up the gate and pushed it open. The two boys stopped in their tracks. Standing inside the gate was Kakashi. He was reading one of his books like he always did, but put it away when he saw them standing at the entrance.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke demanded harshly. "TELL ME NOW!"

"Calm down, calm down." Kakashi replied. "I was just waiting here for you to show up."

"What do you want?" Naruto asked.

"I want the Uchiha, not you brat." Kakashi replied. "It's private."

"Naruto stays." Sasuke said simply. He didn't have to say more. Apparently Kakashi wasn't too determined about keeping what he had to say private.

"Did you two use jutsus in the Hokage's office?" Kakashi asked leadingly.

"What if we did?" Sasuke asked frowning slightly.

"Which ones?" Kakashi asked.

"Does it really matter that much to you?" Naruto asked.

"Yes it does." Kakashi replied. "I heard the Chidori coming from the Hokage's tower. I'm fairly certain that I'm the only one in Konoha who knows how to use that technique."

"You aren't." Sasuke replied in an annoyed voice.

"So you can do it as well?" Kakashi asked. "I wasn't aware that your Sharingan had been activated yet."

"It has."

"So where did you learn chakra nature manipulation?" Kakashi demanded. "You aren't even Genin yet, and you can use my Chidori. I haven't taught that technique to anyone. And you've already copied it, mastered chakra nature manipulation and completed my original move."

"Does it matter?" Naruto asked.

"Hell yes!" Kakashi exploded in anger. Something he rarely did. "You shouldn't be able to even climb up trees yet according to the Hokage he found you hanging upside-down from branches at the academy. Who are you?" he growled threateningly.

"Teme, want to show him?" Naruto asked. "We could get some training in with a good opponent."

Sasuke gave him a glare, but relented. "I'll take the right."

Iruka rubbed his head and groaned. _How the hell did they manage to do that?_ He leaned back in his chair in the teacher's lounge and gazed out the window. "What to do…" The door opened and a couple of teachers walked in chatting. They stopped when they saw Iruka's troubled expression.

"Yo, Iruka man, what's wrong?" One of his fellow teachers asked.

"Everything." Iruka muttered. "The best and worst students in my class both mastered tree walking in one try. They even hung upside-down from a branch." His words caught his fellow teachers off guard.

"You mean… Uchiha Sasuke and …_Uzumaki Naruto_?" The second asked.

"They're the ones." Iruka replied. "Sakura was able to make it up a few steps."

"Isn't she the one with the best chakra control in your class?" The first teacher asked.

"Yes." Iruka said. "I expected something like that from her, but Sasuke and _Naruto_ caught me completely off guard.

"Find them a Jounin Sensei quickly." The second said. "If they can train under a Jounin, it would help them grow."

"But who would take them?" Iruka moaned. "All the Jounin are either on missions, or have a Genin team already. No one will take two academy students."

Sasuke charged in on the right, taking advantage of Kakashi's forehead protector which created a blind spot where Sasuke charged. Meanwhile Naruto attacked on the left and tried to attract Kakashi's attention with a hand full of shadow clones. Off guard to begin with, Kakashi knew the blond was trying to distract him. The Uchiha was currently in his blind spot. _If he knows the Chidori, I'm toast if he tries to hit me._ Sure enough, Kakashi heard the chirping of a thousand birds coming from behind him. He flipped up his forehead protector revealing his Sharingan. _I can't believe I'm doing this for two kids._ He went through the seals and disappeared underground. Naruto quickly formed a Rasengan and drove it into the ground where Kakashi had disappeared. The explosion blew both boys backward along with a lot of debris from the impact crater.

Kakashi grimaced underground as he felt the shockwaves. _That would have killed me…How the hell are they that powerful._ Aboveground, Naruto and Sasuke were recovering from Naruto's assault. The Rasengan created a crater roughly the size of a horse. Bits of rock and dirt littered the ground around the blast site, some of them still smoking. Everything was as it should have been, except Kakashi wasn't visible. Sasuke glanced at Naruto and pointed up. Nodding in comprehension, Naruto jumped up onto the roof of the nearest house, while Sasuke landed on a roof across the street.

"You see him?" Naruto asked worriedly. Kakashi wasn't an opponent to be taken lightly.

Sasuke activated his Sharingan and gazed around the skirmish area. His eyes couldn't sense anything, and nether could his other senses. Sasuke shook his head and quickly jumped to Naruto's side. "He's probably still waiting underground." Naruto nodded in agreement. "If we leave now, we'll have to keep our guard up. If we stay here and try to find him, it could take a while and he might ambush us."

"Then we should move to better ground where we control all the surprises." Naruto stated.

Underground, Kakashi was silent, but very busy. With more hand seals he propelled himself through the ground several hundred meters before surfacing. Unfortunately he surfaced right under a very strong and capable female civilian. Said civilian promptly hit Kakashi over the head with her handbag until the poor Jounin was unconscious yelling "PERVERT!!!" the entire time. He made a funny sight; a ninja buried up to his neck in the street, his face completely puffy and bruised, head lolled to one side.

Meanwhile Naruto and Sasuke had dashed into the forest next to the Hokage Mountain. (Where the faces of the hokages are) They promptly set up a hasty network of wires leading to explosive tags and other traps. Finally able to drop their guard a little, Naruto and Sasuke sat in the branches of a tree to wait.

The Third rubbed his eyes wearily. His day had just gotten worse. Mission requests had to be put aside as Kakashi stood sheepishly before the old man. "You mean to tell me that they attacked you?" He asked.

"Hai Hokage-sama." Kakashi replied. "They could turn into very powerful ninja with proper training." The silver haired Jounin looked almost interested when talking about the two boys.

"As a matter of fact Kakashi." The Third said. "They will become extraordinary shinobi. In fact, they already have." Kakashi's visible eye narrowed. "In truth, they are from the future." At this Hatake Kakashi burst out laughing. The Hokage's eyes narrowed.

"Hokage-sama. You tell a great joke. You almost had me fooled." It took all of Kakashi's self control to keep from rolling on the ground. "We both know that time travel is impossible."

The Third's eyebrow twitched with annoyance as he cleared his throat. "Well, all joking aside, Sasuke did use the Mangekyo Sharingan to use a space-time warp jutsu. Did you sense the abnormal chakra this morning?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No. I was out on a mission." _Oh shit. The Third was serious and I laughed at him. He's going to punish me so badly._

"It was a combination of the Kyuubi and the Mangekyo Sharingan." The Third continued. "I talked with them this morning and they told me about what happened to them."

"Err. Hokage-sama?" Kakashi tried to ask a question.

"Yes, what is it?"

"What are you going to do with them?" the Jounin asked.

"Well, since you asked…"_ Here it comes…_Kakashi sighed mentally already thinking he knew his punishment. "…nothing." the two of them were silent for a split second.

"But I thought you wanted them to train." Kakashi said confused. "How is doing nothing going to accomplish anything?"

"Think about it; please Kakashi." The Third pleaded. "They are the only ones who know what they are capable of. Sasuke mentioned Naruto and the Kyuubi almost using a jutsu that would have destroyed all five elemental nations." He sighed. "They were going to train with a girl by the name of … Haruno Sakura. It seems that they want to do three-man team training."

"Who is this Haruno Sakura?" Kakashi asked suddenly interested in what the boys were doing.

"She's a first generation shinobi and is second in her class after Sasuke." The Third looked up from her file. "Apparently she was able to walk up a free for a few steps after only hearing a brief explination."

"Was that their old Genin team?" Kakashi asked. "Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke?"

"They didn't say." The Third replied. "They didn't say much about their team, although I suspect as much. The fact that Sasuke knows the Chidori suggests that you were their team leader."

Kakashi groaned inwardly his life would go to pieces if he had to take on a Genin team. He wouldn't be able to be lazy and read. He wouldn't be able to do what he wanted when he wanted. He generally shunned commitment and responsibility like the plague, and wasn't keen on shouldering more anytime soon.

Sasuke almost dozed off sitting next to Naruto while waiting to see if Kakashi would fall into any of their traps. For hours the forest had been quiet with no sign of human presence. But that all changed when a ruckus could be heard coming from the south; coming towards Konoha. It took a while for the shouts to form recognizable words, but as soon as they did they could hear the phrase "Flames of Youth!!" over and over again.

Naruto grinned and Sasuke frowned. Team Guy entered their perimeter and set off all the explosive tags in that sector. The explosion caught the Genin team off guard, but they immediately went into combat mode. No one made traps around the village unless they were planning to attack it. Team Guy blindly went through Naruto's and Sasuke's trap fields, setting off explosive notes everywhere and constantly releasing showers of Kunai. When Team Guy finally arrived in the center to find Naruto and Sasuke, they had set off almost every trap the two had set up.

"An explanation you two?" Guy demanded. "That was very un-youthful of you."

Naruto grinned. "Just the people I'm looking for." That caught everyone, including Sasuke off guard.

"Oh?" Guy asked now interested. "Why would that be?"

"OH COME ON!!" Sasuke shouted in Naruto's ear "You think they can help with our training? All they do is run around yelling about flames."

Ten-ten looked up at the Uchiha. "Don't lump us in with them." She pointed at Guy and Lee. "We're just glad we don't have to wear those…those THINGS!" Neji nodded in agreement, but remained silent.

"True, true." Naruto agreed with the weapons master. "Yo Guy-sensei. Could the Teme and I grab some training weights from you?"

"YOSH! THE FLAMES OF YOUTH BURN BRIGHTLY IN YOU!!" Guy shouted, startling all the birds in a mile radius. Everyone sweat dropped at the display. Everyone except Lee, that is. He was standing next to Guy shouting the same exact of thing. Naruto just glared the two until they shut up. "So you want training weights, eh?" Guy thought for a moment. "What did you say your name was?"

"It's Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto replied. "This is Uchiha Sasuke."

"I'll drop of two pairs tomorrow at the Uchiha compound." Guy said. "Any other training tools you need just left me know." He turned to leave, but Sasuke suddenly appeared in front of the Jounin.

"We need three pairs." Sasuke said smoothly.

"YOSH! I'LL MAKE IT FOUR!!" Guy suddenly shouted and disappeared with Lee, leaving Neji and Ten-ten to follow the "Flames of Youth!" resounding through the forest. Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other.

"There's no way I'm ever training with him." Sasuke declared. "I don't think that I'd be able to survive."

"I'd believe that." Naruto replied. "Being around Lee as part of The Rookie Nine was enough for me. I don't know how any one could stand Guy."

"You said it." Sasuke replied. They were silent for a moment before they remembered what they were doing in the forest in the first place. "Shit we've got to move. If Kakashi's tracking us then he's probably on his way right now."

"Damn it." Naruto swore. "I don't like this. With Guy's shouts, our ears can't hear more subtle sounds."

Sasuke swore as well as he realized he couldn't hear normally either. They were in trouble if Kakashi was coming. But he wasn't.

Kakashi left the hogake's tower and made his way through the streets of Konoha. Rubbing his neck and cheek he gazed at the image of his Sensei carved into the mountain. It wasn't often that one could find Kakashi gazing at the Fourth, but he did so now as Naruto reminded him of the former Hokage's.

The piercing blue eyes, and unruly blond hair were easy enough to see. Kakashi had known of the boy, but had never actually spent time to learn more about the Kyuubi's host. The Jounin knew of the beatings Naruto had received in his younger days, and yet was mildly surprised that the boy hadn't gone on a rampage, or left the village behind. Something made him different from everyone else in Konoha, just like Minato. _It's almost as if…No, Sensei never had any kids. Everyone feared the Yellow Flash of Konoha. No one would have been able to see the man he truly was._ Kakashi's own thoughts surprised him sometimes. _Almost like how no one seems to know the real Naruto…_

**WOW!!! I really haven't written much recently, and the amount of work I'm pouring into this is surprising even to me. For some reason, I just wanted to write this story and had been playing around with writing something for a while. I'm just glad everyone who's reviewed so far likes it.**

**I'm planning a side story to connect into the main arc of this story. Right now it isn't much but after a little time fantasizing…I mean pondering profusely, I might just be able to pull it off. Just as a little appetizer to see if anyone can give me something that gives me ideas: it involves one (1) red-eyed, S-class missing-nin (you probably know who…), some other Biju hosts, and a kick-ass original plot.**

**Also, does anyone know the names of all the Biju hosts? I know they're called Ju-something-or-other, but I want to know what village their from and which tailed beast they've got in their bellies. I know Gara, but who is the girl that the two Atatsuki immortals, who also killed Asuma, take down? I think that she had a two-tailed cat.**

**READ AND REVIEW!!!!!!!**

**~Cyberviper42~**


	4. Chapter 4

**Alright Everybody!!! I'm loving the reviews I'm getting. Please keep on reviewing You guys have a lot of good things to say and comment on. I really appreciate that.**

**Also, if you could comment on how you think the fight scenes were; that would be greatly appreciated. I'm not the best when it comes to writing those scenes.**

**NOW FOR THE CHAPTER YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR…**

**After a few questions are answered.**

**I don't think that Sasuke is ready for the long-range chidori. I know it looks cool, but many people have reminded me that Sasuke's and Naruto's chakra levels and control aren't up to normal. One thing that I would like to make clear is that Sasuke and Naruto CAN MANIPULATE THEIR NATURE CHAKRA. If I'm correct in my logic, then chakra manipulation is more a function of mentally learning how to do it. Naruto's clones don't transfer physical training. Also, their chakra capacities are slightly better than originally, but still small compared to their pre-warp levels. **

**Thank you for all who helped me with the biju stuff. I really needed those names.**

**READY?**

**HERE IT COMES!!**

"normal speech"

_Thoughts_

**Biju speech**

_**Biju thoughts**_

Chapter 4: How Do You Do That???

Sakura was surprised to say the least when Sasuke didn't show up for classes the next morning. Iruka didn't even bother to call his name while taking attendance. When he finished, Sakura's hand beat Ino's into the air allowing her to ask the question first.

"Ano, Iruka-Sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Yes Sakura?" Iruka replied as he put the attendance list away.

"Where is Sasuke-kun?" Saskura asked the one question everyone had. "You didn't even call his name."

"Well Sasuke won't be coming to class until your exams come around." Iruka answered. "He's busy training since, as I'm sure you all remember yesterday, he has shown incredible promise."

"But he has always shown promise hasn't he?" Ino asked as the Question and Answer session unofficially began.

"True, but for him and Naruto to be able to do what they did is beyond genius." Iruka explained. "Even Sakura couldn't match their performance even though she is the next best in the class." Ino hissed at Sakura looking to kill as her rival for Sasuke's affection received the praise and glory from their teacher.

"By the way, that reminds me something." Iruka suddenly said. He pulled out a slip of paper and gave it to Sakura who was sitting in the front row. "Hokage-sama asked me to give this to you. He also said for you to be at the Uchiha compound by three for your training."

"NANI!!!" Ino exploded along with the rest of the Uchiha's fan girls. "How does that BAKA get extra training? That isn't fair!"

"Apparently Sasuke asked the Hokage to let her out of classes to train with him and Naruto." Iruka replied calmly before realizing his mistake. The entire Sasuke club descended upon Sakura intent on killing the pink haired ninja. They backed her up into a corner where she had nowhere to run before Iruka could react.

"Now girls, please calm down and return to your seats at–" The poor Chuunin couldn't get another word in as Sakura shocked everyone. Reaching up behind her, she channeled her Chakra into the hands and placed them against the wall. With that grip, she quickly swung herself up onto the wall and planted her feet as well. Scurrying up the wall and out of the reach of the mob, Sakura waited for Iruka to police the girls back to their seats.

For the remainder of the lesson, Sakura felt the glares of her rival, along with the rest of the fan club, boring into the back of her skull. Seconds after Iruka finished his lecture and dismissed the class; Sakura fled the classroom with angry fan girls chasing after her. They tore through the academy and out into the ninja village, causing a general ruckus and required several patrolling members of the ANBU to stop them and return order to Konoha.

Nearly an hour later, at three o'clock precisely, Sakura arrived at the Uchiha compound where she found the Third Hokage waiting for her. Rushing over to the old man, Sakura apologized profusely for keeping him waiting. "I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting Hokage-sama." She said respectfully.

"There's nothing to apologize for." The Third replied. "I actually had to be here earlier to discus things with your new training partners."

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Sakura asked, trying to get to the point quickly.

The old man chuckled. "My my. Can't wait to see Sasuke-kun?" Sakura blushed slightly at his words.

"H-Hai." Sakura stammered.

"Well I don't want to keep you long." The Third stated. "You have been removed from the academy and will not return until it's time to take the Genin exam." He paused. "That's only two months away, but two months is plenty of time to become better."

"Who will be training us?" Sakura asked. "Will you be?"

"No. No." Saratobi chuckled at her question. "Unfortunately I'm not able to leave my office often with all the paperwork that I have to do. However, Naruto and Sasuke will be teaching you, and they are better than you could possibly imagine." The Hokage chuckled as his words surprised Sakura. "I will let you go to your training now. I have to inform your parents of this shift. In order to improve, you will be living here until the exams, so you'll have to go get your things tonight."

Sakura couldn't believe the old man's words. _Me? Live with Sasuke-kun? SWEET!!! _Her inner self began dancing around with joy as she entered the abandoned clan compound. As she walked towards the Head Family's mansion, the sounds of battle increased in volume. _Sasuke must be beating Naruto up for training. _Sakura decided, but as soon as she rounded the last corner, she stopped and gawked at the scene.

Tens of Narutos flew around the street attacking Sasuke from almost every angle possible. Whenever Sasuke managed to hit one with enough force, that Naruto would disappear in a poof of chakra smoke. It took her a long moment to realize that Naruto was slowly, but surely driving Sasuke backward towards a pair of Naruto's holding something blue in their hands. Sakura was about to yell to Sasuke when electricity started to flow off of her crush's body, quickly expanding until all but the two Narutos remained. Sakura couldn't help but feel the power the two boys put out during this fight. It was like watching two juggernauts plow into each other intent on killing the other.

When the Chakra smoke cleared from Sasuke's last attack, Sakura could see Sasuke's chakra forming a ball in his hand. It spewed lightning and made the most beautiful noise, somewhat like a thousand birds chirping their songs. Sasuke launched himself at the two Naruto's driving his fist into one and then the other, but not before receiving a Rasengan to the stomach. Sakura watched in horror as Sasuke flew backward nearly 30 meters before crunching into a thick slab of rock…and disappearing in a poof of chakra smoke.

Naruto stood in his room inside the Uchiha mansion. "Man this place rocks!" he said to the black haired boy standing in the doorway. "It's so huge and it's got all sorts of cool nooks and crannies."

"Hn…" Sasuke replied. "It gets boring after a while."

"That's why I'm here!" Naruto declared. "I'm Konoha's number one unpredictable ninja!"

"Our fight outside is finished." Sasuke stated. "Want to go for another round?"

"Nah…" Naruto replied. "Sakura was supposed to be coming around now. If we started to fight, then we wouldn't be able to stop ourselves from going all the way until we were too exhausted to move anymore. Besides, we need to train Sakura."

"What we really need is that Tsunade person to teach Sakura how to do medical ninjutu." Sasuke said. "I don't know any of that junk."

"Oi!" Naruto said. "It isn't junk. Even with the basic field aid that Tsunade taught me, I was able to save lives. Besides if you get good enough with medical Ninjutsu you can fight with it like Kabuto was able to do. You know how powerful he was." The blond knew he sold the Uchiha with that last sentence. Sasuke wanted power.

Outside the Uchiha mansion Sakura carefully picked her way through the rubble on the street looking for a clue on where Sasuke and Naruto were. There weren't any clues. Nothing remained except destruction. Not even one of the millions of Kunai and Shuriken she had witnessed Naruto throw were left. _This is very strange._ She finally gave up and decided to look inside the Mansion for any trace of the boys. What she didn't expect was for the boys to walk out of the gates look at the destruction and not even care.

"Oi! Sakura!" Naruto called out. "When did you get here?"

"Umm…" Sakura looked a little unsurely at the two boys. "How did you do that?"

"Huh?" Sasuke asked. "What do you mean?"  
"HOW DID YOU DESTROY THE ENTIRE STREET AND DISSAPEAR AND NOW WALK OUT AS IF NOTHING HAPPENED????" Sakura shouted completely confused, worried, and nervous. The Third was right to say they were strong.

"Shadow clones Sakura!" Naruto replied bouncing up and down next to her. Sakura used their closeness to examine them. They were wearing their normal clothes, but they wore leggings around their ankles. Both were black and looked as if something bulky was underneath the cloth.

"What are you wearing?" Sakura asked pointing at their feet.

"They're training weights." Sasuke told her. "We've got a pair for you as well."

The pink haired girl looked at them with a blank expression. "Why do I need to strap weights to myself? They'd just get in my way."

"That's kinda the point Sakura." Naruto tried to explain the point of the weights, but he wasn't very good at it. Sasuke had to interrupt him and give her a quick sentence that summed up their purpose. "Humph. Show off." Naruto said with his arms folded across his chest. Without speaking a word to each other, the boys turned and walked back through the gates leaving Sakura to follow them.

"What did you mean by shadow clones Naruto?" Sakura asked the blond.

"With the Kage Bushin, you can multiply the time you spend training." Naruto answered, for once knowing the whole answer. "Whatever chakra exercises or memories your clones gains while still active, you get when they are dispelled."

"But that's a Jounin rank technique! Sakura complained. "You two aren't even Genin. How'd you learn that?"

"It's a story for later." Sasuke replied quickly putting the matter rest for the moment. "Right now you need to learn the jutsu so we can get to training. The quicker you master it, the faster you can train."

"How hard is it?" Sakura asked nervous at the prospect of having to learn a Jounin technique quickly.

"The hardest part is the chakra control, but that shouldn't be a problem for you." Naruto replied. "After that, it's just a matter of putting a lot of Chakra into the technique."

"You should try for one when you start." Sasuke warned her. "Naruto can do about 100 if he needed to. I don't have the same chakra reserves, so I'm limited to around a dozen." Sakura's eyes widened in disbelief.

"But you're so much better that Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed to Sasuke.

"Oi!" Naruto complained. "We're even." Sasuke nodded in agreement, further astonishing Sakura.

"He's already mastered the Kage Bushin and uses it as a platform for many of his other major jutsus." Sasuke informed the girl. Sakura just nodded mindlessly too astonished to say anything.

Two days later.

Sakura woke up from her dreamless sleep when her accursed alarm buzzed next to her ear. The unfortunate piece of machinery quickly suffered one of Sakura's trademark punches, quickly shutting it up. She groaned as she rolled out of bed and stood up to stretch. Leaning back, her back began to crack and pop as she twisted and bent, leaving her feeling refreshed. She shuffled her way to the adjacent bathroom and began the half-hour long process of getting ready for training.

After a quick, yet thorough shower she brushed her teeth, combed her long hair, and slipped into her regular crimson ninja outfit and topped her outfit off with a red ribbon to hold her hair back. She left her room feeling ready for the day and gazed at the sunrise through the window as she walked through the hall. As usual, Naruto and Sasuke were practicing Taijutsu in the lawn. They were just streaks passing through her field of vision, revealing part of their true speed and combat abilities.

Having found the boys eating unhealthy foods while putting their bodies through incredible strains on her first morning, Sakura assumed the duty of preparing the meals. She did so because, one, she didn't want to eat the same things they were accustomed to, and two, saw it as a chance to impress Sasuke with her abilities. Within fifteen minutes, Sakura had prepared a light breakfast for the three of them and the aroma made the boys stop and come in to eat.

They had quickly established a routine. In the morning Sakura would practice the Kage Bushin technique with Naruto and work on climbing trees. Afterward, Sasuke would work on her Taijutsu and stamina by having her attack training posts and run around the inside of the compound. In the evening, Sakura would watch Naruto and Sasuke run through their ninjutsu libraries and learned how to plan an attack with a three-man cell. In the evenings, after dinner and after night fell, the three would work on stealth and try to sneak up on patrolling ANBU and other ninja responsible for guarding the gates of Konoha. By ten o'clock all three were in bed exhausted from a solid days worth of training.

They passed a month following this schedule, and as Sakura advanced through the lessons Naruto and Sasuke gave her, she began to learn more powerful techniques, as well as some medical ninjutsu that Naruto gave her to practice. As it turned out, she was perfect for the role as medical-nin as her chakra control and chakra reserves grew exponentially better. The three occasionally saw old academy friends while shopping for food and other necessities in the village markets, but as their training progressed, they grew more and more distant from the academy students. A month before the Genin exams, the Third Hokage summoned them to his office.

"I know that you three aren't officially ninja yet, but I think it would be appropriate to give you a few missions a week." The old man smiled at Naruto's smile.

"We'll do 'em!" Naruto exclaimed. "So what's first?"

The hokage pulled out a slip of paper from his desk drawer and handed it to Naruto for him to read. After a few moments, he passed it to Sasuke and stared at the old man. "You can't be serious."

The Third smiled at Naruto. "I am serious." He waited for Sasuke and Sakura to finish reading the paper before continuing. "Your mission is to find Jiraiya and Tsunade and bring them back to the village."

"BUT THAT"LL TAKE MORE THAN A MONTH!" Naruto shouted. "We won't be back in time to take the exam!"

"I'm sure that you can do it. The two of them are currently staying in a town not to far from here." He replied.

"Hokage-sama, isn't this a C-rank because it takes us out of the village?" Sakura asked.

"No." his response surprised them. "This is a B-rank mission." Sakura's eyes shoot open and her jaw fell loose. "They will be harder to get back, but when they read this scroll they will probably come back." He handed Sasuke a scroll that was sealed with a complicated ink seal.

"We'll bring them back in a month." Sasuke promised.

"I'm glad to hear that." Replied the Hokage. "Good luck."

It took the three of them no time at all to return to the Uchiha compound and gather the supplies they needed.

"Kunai, Shuriken, first aid kit, tent, sleeping role, soldier pills, blood replenishment pills, traveling rations…" Sakura trailed off. "I think that that's everything. Can you two think of anything else we need?"

Naruto shook his head while Sasuke emptied another armload or gear onto the pile of supplies they gathered. He placed several ninjutsu, sealing, and tactical scrolls into their packs and topped everything off with an extra weapon holster. "Now we're ready." He said as he stood up.

"How are we going to find these two?" Sasuke asked looking to Naruto.

"Well Ero-sannin–" He began but was cut off by Sakura

"NANI??? Who's Ero-sannin?" she asked.

"Jiraiya…the pervert, also known as Ero-sannin can be found at hot springs peeping at the ladies side, or at some perverted store or other." Naruto explained. "Tsunade baa-chan can be found at casino's and is known as the Legendary Sucker. She loves to gamble, but stinks at it. She's an amazing medical-nin and can pound Ero-sannin like no tomorrow."

"Eh? How do you know all this?" Sakura asked.

"I-I read a lot when I was younger… They're two of the legendary Sannin of Konoha." Naruto replied. "They're some of the best ninja that Konoha has produced."

"Let's get going you two." Sasuke called from the gate. "We've only got a month!" Naruto and Sakura followed the raven-haired Uchiha out of the compound and the village to start their first mission.

**Alright!!!! I've finally got a good idea of how the next few chapters will turn out. Continue to review and comment/ ask questions. I love all the feed back.**

**I'm further along with my side story and I just need to sort out a few things before I'm ready to start incorporating it into this story as chapters or parts of chapters. **

**READ AND REVIEW!!!  
**

**~Cyberviper42~**


	5. Chapter 5

**Alright everyone. ATTENTION-HUT!**

**Did that get your attention?**

**I hope it did. You have a chapter to read, and a review to write…**

**SO GET MOVING SOLDIER!**

**Read and Review!**

"normal speech"

_Thoughts_

**Biju speech**

_**Biju thoughts**_

Chapter 5: The Legendary Sucker

Hinata watched the team made of Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke leave the Uchiha compound. She wasn't spying on them…merely looking in on what they were doing. Yah she liked the way that sounded. She was merely interested in how they were doing. Her pale eyes watched the three of them walk fully loaded with ninja gear walk down the village streets and stop at the main gate. _They aren't leaving are they? _Hinata worried. _The exams aren't too far off…_ She watched as Naruto pumped a fist in the air and shouted something, which earned him a stare from Sasuke and a punch to the head from Sakura.

"BAKA!!" Sakura shouted. "Quit wasting time! We've got a mission to complete!" Hinata hid further behind the corner she was already partly hiding behind. _Why do they get a mission? They aren't even Genin yet!_ She looked back toward the gate to see the trio walking down the road. _Don't tell me that they somehow took a different test and are allowed to go on missions now!_ Hinata began to panic slightly. School was out for the day, so she went to see Ino. _She'll know what to do._

Within a matter of hours, the team of three arrived in the village that supposedly Tsunade was currently residing. Sakura and Sasuke spent the entire journey peppering Naruto with question after question about the people they were supposed to find.

"Remember, Tsunade baa-chan is a large-breasted women with a purple diamond on her forehead and looks like she is in her twenties or thirties." Naruto reminded his teammates for a final time.

"She has blond hair in two pig tails and can be found in casinos." Sakura added while Naruto nodded in agreement.

"She also has an assistant named Shizune who usually has a small pig named Ton-ton with her." Sasuke finished the description fingering the radio that Naruto had packed.

"If any ones sees them, follow them and call the team together." Naruto ordered.

"Who died and made you captain?" Sasuke asked the blond.

"I vote for Sasuke!" Sakura squealed. "He'd be much better at it."

Naruto looked at his two teammates. "Sure why not. We can switch the job around on other missions." Naruto walked of leaving Sakura and especially Sasuke surprised. Within twenty minutes Sakura's voice came over the boys' radios.

"I think I've spotted Shizune." Sakura stated. "West side of town near a fountain." Within a minute Sasuke and Naruto had both appeared at her side and stared out of her hiding place. "See on the other side of the square?" Sakura asked. "Black hair, and she had a pig with her."

"She looks nervous." Sasuke stated.

"I'd bet that she n' Tsunade'll make a run for it." Naruto said. "They'll skip town and try another one. We'll have to follow them and make sure we don't lose them."

"I thought I was the team captain." Sasuke said bitterly.

"I'm just adding my two cents." Naruto replied with a shrug.

"There's Tsunade." Sakura said getting the boys' attention back on the mission objective.

"That's her." Naruto confirmed. The three of them watched as the pair swiftly left the town without hesitation. "And they're skipping town." He jumped down from their hiding spot and walked after the two female medical ninja.

From their vantage point Sakura and Sasuke watched the blond-haired boy leave the town trying to catch up with Tsunade and Shizune. "We'll follow along either side of the road." Sasuke told his female teammate. "Keep hidden unless it looks like he needs help." Sakura nodded and the two of them speed off to the woods surrounding the road.

Naruto raced after the slug Sannin and her companion, but he wasn't getting closer or for that matter, further away. They were matching his speed, but Naruto grinned. He formed his favorite cross seal and formed one shadow clone. Tossing off his training weights, he let the clone pick them up as he disappeared down the road.

As he neared the traveling duo, he tapped his radio and called out to his teammates. There wasn't a response, so Naruto assumed that he was simply out of range._Now for a little fun._ Nartuo quickly made some more shadow clones and dispersed them into the forest to be his own back up. He made another clone, but this time, he had the clone transform into a random boy he had seen in one of the towns they had passed through that day. He wanted to be able to use the Rasengan if he needed to without revealing his ability to use the Kage Bushin technique. Naruto's approach had not gone unnoticed by the Sannin and her companion.

"Tsuande-sama." Shizune began. "There are a lot of people following us from the village."

"They're not villagers." Tsunade replied. "They're shinobi. They're traveling at high speed through the forest as well as the path."

Shizune closed her eyes and began to stretch her sensing further and further until she sensed the chakra of their pursuers. Her eyes snapped open as she gasped. "There are roughly twenty Chuunin, a couple of Jounin, and perhaps a Genin? It's hard to measure the last one."

"Is there any one who would want us badly enough to hire so many shinobi?" the Sannin asked her assistant.

"No, Tsunade-sama." Shizune replied. "Should we try to outrun them anyway?"

The Sannin shook her head. "Let's see what they want." She replied. "We can take them if we must, but I'd rather avoid a fight. If we run now, they might get the wrong idea and attack us." They didn't stop moving, but rather continued on at their previous pace waiting for the other ninja to appear.

When Naruto caught up with the medical-nin, they were surprised to see such a young boy. "I thought you said there were only Chuunin and Jounin chasing us." Tsunade hissed at Shizune who shrank away.

"They had the chakra levels of an experienced Chuunin." Shizune replied. "He must be a chakra freak."

"Oi!" Naruto called out. "Quit calling me a freak! I hate it when people think they know me just by looking at me." Tsunade scanned the blond boy. His eyes were piercingly sharp, his hair a mess, and three curious whisker marks on each of his cheeks.

"Why are you following us?" Tsunade demanded, getting straight to the point.

"We've got a mission." Naruto replied. He nodded to his clone, which retreated to a safe distance and then dispelled to help the other clones know what was happening. "And that mission is to give you a scroll." As if on cue Sasuke and Sakura dropped out of the trees to stand beside Naruto. Sasuke had the scroll in hand and tossed it to the Sannin.

Tsunade deftly caught the scroll and examined it for booby traps. When she was satisfied that there were none, she opened the scroll and began to read the message from her former Sensei. She finished it quickly and thought for a moment before rolling the scroll back up. "It seems that the Third wants me to return to Konoha." She murmured to Shizune who stood next to her.

"Are you going to go?" Her assistant asked. "It would be nice to finally be able to settle down for a little while."

"It took you twenty of Konoha's shinobi to find me and deliver this message?" Tsunade asked returning her attention to the two boys and girl who stood before her.

"Naruto what did you do?" Sakura asked. "Don't tell me you made that many clones!"

"Baka." Sasuke said. "You need to think these things through. They might have thought they were under a serious attack."

"Hey brat!" Tsunade said as she strolled over the underage Shinobi. "You can do a bushin that has it's own chakra?"

"It's the Kage Bushin no jutsu." Naruto replied tersly. "And I have a name! It's Uzumaki Naruto and I'm going to be the next Hokage!"

Tsunade was taken aback for a minute but then smiled. "Don't worry about becoming the Hokage brat. It's a fools job." Naruto was stunned. How could his lady insult her own sensei… then Naturo remembered their first encounter before the time warp.

Scowling Naruto's chakra suddenly flared up pushing everyone away from him. The force of his chakra was so great that he started to float several inches above the ground. "To insult your Sensei, your grandfather, and his brother like that is just dishonorable. I will make you take back those words." His eyes slowly turned red and looked like the demon fox's, but surprisingly there wasn't a hint of red in his chakra. The Kyuubi was simply not pouring his power into his host, but the changing eyes had Sasuke nervous. He grabbed Sakura and landed a little way away from the two combatants. He edged over to Naruto to try to calm him down, but Naruto's fist connected with Sasuke's jaw before the black-haired Uchiha could say anything to him. Naruto glared at Sasuke through his new eyes and commanded; "Don't interfere."

Naruto couldn't help but notice the way he felt now. His eyesight was better, his nose was detecting scents that would make Kiba and his companion jealous, and more interesting was his sudden ability to 'see' chakra moving through the Sannin. It wasn't like the Hyuga clan's bloodline limit, but he could tell that Tsunade was preparing to mold her chakra into a jutsu.

Darting forward, Naruto prepared a Rasengan with only one hand and drove it towards the Sannin. Naruto wasn't prepared for his attack to land on his first pass, but it connected solidly with Tsunade's gut. Although it wasn't fully formed, (he wasn't expecting the gap to close so quickly.), the Rasengan still threw Tsunade backward. She recovered with a flip and landed roughly twenty meters away from Naruto. "I wasn't expecting that technique from a twerp like yourself, but I shouldn't be too surprised that you couldn't form a complete Rasengan.

Naruto glared at Tsunade. "You're just a stuck up old hag." He declared, causing Shizune to gasp and pull back in fear. A vein bulged on Tsunade's otherwise calm face which indicated her anger. "You don't understand why other people protect others. You don't understand why I would gladly give my life for my friends. When you protect people with your life, that is true power."

He formed three clones with his favorite technique and let them form his own original technique. "You shouldn't think so lightly of me." He grinned wildly. "I've mastered the Rasengan." Naruto created over twenty shadow clones, earning him a surprised look from Tsunade. The clones paired up and began to form the two-person Rasengan which earned him a slightly open mouth from the Sannin.

Tsunade's face paled at the technique the boy with now red eyes was holding. She could feel the power that the completed Rasengan was giving out. Suddenly her eyes weakened and she lost her spark. Naruto dispelled his technique, Tsunade's eyes worrying him.

"Naruto." Tsuande began. "You have grown strong by wanting to protect those who you love. I haven't had that strength before." She smiled at him sadly. _He reminds me of _them_ so much. All three wanted to protect everyone else._ She removed the necklace that hung around her neck, the crystal glittering in the dieing sunlight. She walked over to him, looped it around his neck and kissed his unprotected forehead. "Become stronger and live out your dreams." She gave him her blessing and then turned to a shocked Shizune, Sakura, and Sasuke. "Let's go back to Konoha." Naruto grinned and shouted happily pumping his fist in the air.

"Dobe. You might want to look at your eyes." Sasuke told the blond with a smack on the head. "They're red."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Naruto asked, creating a shadow clone to look at his face. Naruto nearly collapsed when he saw the Kyuubi's red eyes staring back at him. "No way…" he murmured. "I have to chat with a little some one. Sasuke could you carry me?" Sakura, Shizune, and Tsunade looked puzzled, but Sasuke simply shrugged and nodded. Naruto sat down and closed his eyes, pushing himself into his subconscious.

When Naruto opened his eyes, he saw the Kyuubi behind its cage. "Oi!" Naruto called out. "What's with my eyes? They're all red like yours!"

**"Brat!" **The Kyuubi replied. **"Didn't you ever learn about the bloodline limits in your ninja school?"**

"Probably, but I never paid any attention." Naruto replied. "You know that."

The Kyuubi sighed. **"It's been theorized by humans that the bloodline limits originated from us demons." **The Kyuubi told Naruto. **"They are correct. I simply gave you a bloodline limit that incorporates aspects from other bloodline limits you've seen."**

"So what cool stuff can I do?" Naruto asked, almost slipping back to his twelve-year-old eagerness.

**"You've probably noticed the ability to sense chakra and your heightened vision and prediction."** The demon fox replied. **"You've also got the ability to mix your elemental attacks into a single move. For example, your wind and fire chakra can be combined to augment each other." **The Kyuubi let this information seem into the blonde's head. **"You can also memorize something by just looking at it once. You could skim through a scroll and be able to remember everything it said."**

Naruto looked up at the towering red fox. "So why did you give this to me?" He asked. "You never gave this to me before."

**"I gave it to you so that when the time comes, you can destroy your enemies." **The Kyuubi hesitated before continuing. **"Among your opponents before, was the shinobi responsible for my imprisonment. He forced me to attack your village hoping I would destroy it."**

Naruto was shocked at this revelation from the Kyuubi. "Was it that guy with the one-eyed mask?"

**"Yes."** Replied the nine-tailed fox.

"Any special way to activate and deactivate it?" Naruto asked. "I can't walk all over Konoha with red eyes. It would incite a few riots…potentially dangerous stuff."

**"Simply will it to be or to fade and it will respond." **The Kyuubi replied. **"There should be no side effects, but be careful none the less. It took me an entire month to create it specially for you. There's a slight possibility that something is off."**

"Thanks for the warning… and the eyes." Naruto said bowing slightly to the beast sealed within him. Something he had never done before. "See ya!" He let his mind wander back to the real world to here his companions talking.

"We may have to wait a few more days before returning to Konoha." Sasuke said stepping forward, carrying the passed out Naruto piggy-back style down the road.

"Why is that?" The Slug Sannin asked the Uchiha.

"We still have another half of the mission to complete." Sakura answered for Sasuke.

"Oh yeah!" Naruto exclaimed waking up. "We need to find Ero-sannin." Tsunade grimaced at the thought of her other teammate while Sasuke immediately let Naruto off. He willed his eyes to fade, and when he turned to Sasuke, the Uchiha nodded to reassure Naruto that his eyes were back to normal. "Any good hot springs around here?"

"About a thirty miles to the east, there is a tourist town where not springs are the main attraction." Shizune replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Ero-sannin likes to peep." Naruto replied. Shizune sweat dropped and fiddled with the scroll that Tsunade had handed her.

Sasuke looked at the setting sun and sighed. "We'd better get to a town before the sun sets completely." Naruto looked at the sun and the rest of his team and smiled.

-Not too far away-

The toad hermit glanced at the sun worriedly. His contact was supposed to arrive at noon, but it was now nearly a half hour after the sun had started its long descent. The Atasuski spy always was on time, except today, and the hermit was getting worried. Suddenly the bushes in front of the old Sannin swayed and out tumbled an obviously injured Uchiha Itachi. The Hermit caught his contact and gently laid him on the ground, examining him for injuries. The eldest Uchiha was beaten fairly badly, but still conscious.

"They're coming." He managed to say weakly before passing out. Jiraiya looked around for any signs of pursuers before he picked up the unconscious Uchiha and leaped his way back to his hotel room. When he arrived, he immediately removed the Atasuski ring and his forehead protector which had a cut through the leaf symbol. After sealing them in a scroll, the Toad Sannin began to use the few healing jutsus he had learned over the years at Tsuande's side. He was able to heal some of the major bone breaks and cuts, but he ran out of chakra before he could completely heal the missing-nin. (Itachi is REALLY injured)

"What did they do to you kid?" Jiraiya asked the unconscious body. "You're sure beat up." The older shinobi continued to care for his charge for nearly three days before the Uchiha woke up. Even when conscious, Itachi didn't say a word and simply lay there in the Hermit's room as his body healed on its own.

**WOOO!!! ITACHI MAKES HIS ENTERENCE!! **

**Who likes Naruto's eyes? I know that the reason for the bloodline limits isn't new, but hopefully no one else has used the same powers associated with this new one. I haven't decided what to call it! TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK A GOOD NAME WOULD BE!!!**

**Also, to those who think that this limit is too powerful, it will have a few, well, handicaps to go with it.**

**On a note on power, I originally had Naruto use the Fuuton: Rasen-Shuriken but decided against it. Sasuke and Naruto need to earn their power back, in my opinion.**

**READ AND REVIEW!!!**

**~Cyberviper42~**


	6. Chapter 6

**Alright! How'd everyone like the last chapter?**

**I got some reviews from people saying that they hoped that Itachi wouldn't be introduced to the other characters for a while. I realized that this was probably a good idea, so I've descided to rewrite the chapters I already have done and add in some other ideas that I had. It also gives me some time to thoroughly explore Naruto's new bloodline limit. I'm still looking for a name to it, so please help me out here and give me a lot of suggestions. **

**Here's a new chapter for you to savor and enjoy if you promise to review…This'll be a long chapter.**

**READ AND REVIEW!!!**

**Enjoy.**

"normal speech"

_Thoughts_

**Biju speech**

_**Biju thoughts**_

Chapter 6: The Toad Hermit

Needless to say, Jiraiya was careful after Itachi said that _they_ were coming. There was no doubt in his mind that the 'they' Itachi referred to was Atasuski. If a traitor was found in their midst, it was only logical to assume that they would kill said person. No other organization on the face of the land was as cutthroat and as vicious as Atasuski. When people crossed them, they didn't normally live very long. Itachi's escape from the grasps of eight other S-class missing-nins was a testament to his power and will to live.

The Toad Sannin looked over his patient's still form. Itachi's Atasuski cloak along with his ring and forehead protector had been removed from his person. The only way someone would recognize the missing-nin, was for him or her to have either seen him before, or his picture in bingo book or on a wanted poster. Despite their remote location in a fairly low-profile tourist town, Jiraiya took plenty of precautions. Atasuski wasn't an organization to be trifled with.

He had placed tens of detection seals around the town to alert him to any high-level chakra signatures. He had also instructed the hotel staff to call him on the phone in the room if any ninja or bounty hunter came to the hotel. Even thought Atasuski members normally went around in their distinct robes, there was no telling how their minions and other contacts would approach Itachi.

"Damn boy." Jiraiya said under his breath. "You sure need a lot of protection even though you're the best Konoha ninja in decades."

"I hope you don't decide I'm too much trouble Jiraiya." Itachi mumbled, hearing the perverted Sannin's words. "I'd hate to have to kill you in order to live."

"You have a way with words." Jiraiya said smiling slightly. "I think I was just convinced to stay."

"Good." Itachi replied before rolling over and closing his eyes.

"Get some rest and heal up quick." Jiraiya instructed as he stared out the window, thinking about his next book. _The Missing-nin and the Princess._ He thought to himself. _Now that will sell well._ He turned from the window and whipped out his writing tools from a pocket and set to work.

In three days, Naruto's band had covered the distance to the nearest tourist town known for their hot springs. Three days to get acquainted with the Sannin, three days to train as they walked, three days to enjoy the nice weather.

Sasuke stopped at the entrance to the town and looked at the mid-day sun, judging the hours till sunset. "We have five or six hours, let's search this place from top to bottom." He looked at Naruto who promptly made around a dozen shadow clones with his favorite ninjutsu. "Everyone pair up with a clone. They'll be our way of communicating discoveries."

"You've thought this thru carefully I presume." Tsuande asked Sasuke.

"I always do." The Uchiha replied and then walked over to the original Naruto. "Let's go." Almost immediately, six clones vanished into the treetops to quickly move around the town.

Tsuande left with her clone to search the western portions of the town. Sakura and Shizune left with their clones to cover the northern sections of the town where the hot springs were located. If they were going to find the perverted Sannin, the hot springs were a likely place to find him doing his 'research.' Naruto and Sasuke covered the eastern portions of the town, leaving the remaining clones to search the southern sections. With everybody searching, the town seemed to gain a new bustling energy as a certain blond haired boy was seen jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

For Jiraiya, the warnings from the detection seals he had placed around the town alerted him to the presence of roughly twenty chakra signatures ranging from Genin to high jounin levels. One signature was on-par with his own. _Either the best of Atasuski, Orochimaru, or Tsunade is here if this seal is measuring correctly. _Jiraiya pondered the possibilities. _There aren't many casinos around here, so Tsunade isn't a likely option. Orochimaru shouldn't even be interested in me, or this region of the Fire Country, so by process of elimination, I'm dealing with the best of Atasuski._

The thought of taking on someone like the leader of Atasuski or his second in command didn't sit well with Jiraiya. "We'd better get moving." The Sannin said as he shock Itachi awake. The former ANBU captain didn't complain as he slowly and painfully sat up and managed to henge himself into a pack. Without a second thought, Jiraiya leapt out the window with Itachi in pack form, slung over his shoulder. He left the appropriate amount of money to pay for the room, but nothing else. He didn't want to leave a trail.

The Toad Sannin didn't want to attract unwanted attention, so he exited the town like a normal civilian. Only when he couldn't sense the chakra signatures in the town, did he begin to use his ninja training to travel swiftly through the trees. He only stopped once for Itachi to eat and take a rest from holding a henge over himself for so long. Normally this wouldn't have been necessary, but in Itachi's weakened state, the use of jutsu beyond the academy level would leave him unnaturally fatigued.

After a steady day's travel, the duo reached the next settlement, only to find it a small city—much better to hide in. With a safe hotel room, and a chakra sensing seal barrier around the city, they were able to lower their guard a fraction and rest.

Back with Naruto's team, the word frustrated would best describe their attitudes. The hotel staff had been kind enough to inform them of Jiraiya's departure later that day: That was after Tsunade had threatened them with agony beyond comprehension until they complied.

They had missed the Sannin by just a few hours. _A few miserable hours!_ Needless to say, Tsunade was quite upset, if it wasn't for Shizune's suggestion of getting something to eat and drink, the Slug Sannin might have destroyed the hotel in a fit of rage.

They found a small outdoor bar that served ramen, to appease Naruto, Sake, to appease/calm Tsunade's nerves, and bar-bee-que to satisfy Sakura, Shizune, and Sasuke's hunger. Their dinner was uneventful until Tsunade's curves attracted the attention of several civilian men, all of whom were intent on having some fun.

"Well, pretty, what do you say, wanna leave these lowlifes and have some fun with us?" One man asked as he leaned close to the Sannin. He breath was laced with alcohol, but he was still sober enough to walk without too much difficulty.

"No thanks." Tsunade replied irritably. Her response wasn't what the man wanted to hear.

"We can have lots of fun together tonight, pretty." He grinned with the rest of the men. "I'm sure all of us can figure out something pleasurable to do."

"I said no thanks." Tsunade replied placing her cup of sake down slowly with her temper barely under control.

"Oi, I'd back off if I were you." Naruto said, catching the attention of the group. "She'll pound you till you need surgery to sleep."

"You wanna make something of this little boy." One nameless man from the crowd asked, looking to beat the blond up.

"Ninja don't go without a fight." Sasuke said, standing up and turning to face them. He opened his eyes and raised his head slowly, to reveal the Sharingan. "If you don't want to die, I suggest backing off. Sannin don't need to be bothered with scum like you."

The fame of the Uchiha clan was known in almost every corner of the land. Their Sharingan was something of legend, and their strength was embellished to the point of no return. At the sight of Sasuke's Sharingan, the men knew they were in trouble if they tried anything more. They fled without a second thought.

"Sasuke-kun, you're too cool!" Squealed Sakura as said Uchiha sat back down next to her.

"…" Sasuke didn't bother replying to the pink haired kunoichi.

"You didn't have to do that." Tsunade said to the boys. "I could have knocked them out with one finger."

"But that would cause trouble, and we don't want that." Sasuke replied. "It's easier than fighting them. They weren't worth the time or chakra anyway."

"Ano, what are we going to do about Ero-Sannin?" Naruto asked. "We don't know which direction he left."

"Which way is the nearest town or city?" Sasuke asked.

"Maybe a day's walk from here to the north." Shizune replied after consulting a map briefly. "If we pushed it, we could make it there in three hours."

"But…um…well, I can't really travel fast." Sakura stated shyly. "We never really did long distance travel at high speed during training."

"Then how do we get there quickly?" Naruto burst out.

"We split up." Tsunade said before taking another sip of sake. "The boys can go on ahead in the morning and we can catch up with them by sunset."

"The trail won't grow cold that way," Sasuke stated. "And if we don't find any trace of him there, we can meet you on the way and come back here."

"Make's sense I guess." Sakura said, agreeing with her crush.

"Alright." Naruto agreed as well, seeing as there wasn't a better alternative. "We should get to bed if we want to get their fast." He yawned and left the others with Sasuke at his side.

They had rented two rooms in the hotel when they were there earlier in the day. One was for Naruto and Sasuke, the males of the group, while the other was for Sakura, Shizune, and Tsunade, the females of the group. In their room, Naruto had the bed closest to the bathroom, while Sasuke took the other bed by the window. Naruto donned his funny sleeping hat and climbed into bed, leaving Sasuke to stare at the rising moon.

-In Naruto's Subconscious-

Naruto looked up at the cage containing the Kyuubi. The red multi-tailed fox could be seen shrouded in a halo of red chakra, crouching next to the barred doors.

"Why do you want to talk to me?" Naruto demanded. "I'd rather not wake up in the morning with a headache from our conversation."

**"You'd do well to remember to whom you are talking to brat." **The Kyuubi replied. **"I wouldn't have dragged you here if there wasn't something important to discuss."**

"So get talking fur-ball." Naruto replied irritated. "I'd like to sleep."

**"This has to do with our bloodline." **The Nine-tailed fox rumbled from inside his cage. **"You should try it out when you get the chance. We won't know its true capabilities until you do."**

**"**Is that all you wanted to say to me?" Naruto asked disappointedly.

**"No…Something more interesting that you may find helpful in the future." **The demon replied. **"A summoning contract."**

"No way in hell I'm signing one with you." The blond declared. "Besides, I've already got one with the Toads and I'm not going to give up learning sage mode again."

**"Humans can have multiple summoning contracts." **He replied. **"Besides, this contract is different. It only summons me. Your Toad contract will still be honored."**

"How do I know that you aren't tricking me." Naruto asked suspiciously. "You aren't the most trustworthy of beings."

The Kyuubi grinned from behind his cage. **"You don't." **He whispered evilly. **"But needless to say, by experience will be useful in your training."**

"And how would that be?" Naruto asked. "I'm not dumb-"

**"All evidence to the contrary aside."**

"Shut UP!" Naruto nearly screamed at the fox. "Like the hell I need your help."

**"I know a lot that you don't." **The Nine-tails replied. **"There are other methods of training to enormous power. Think about the number of times you would have been crippled if it were not for me."** He stopped for a moment. **"I have given you great gifts, you should appreciate them more."**

"I've yet to see many useful gifts, Kyuubi." Naruto replied. "The only helpful thing you've given me is my healing factor."

**"That's to protect myself fool."** The Kyuubi snarled. **"You should know that by now you and I are bound together until I can escape from here."**

"I'm not going to let you go if that's what you're getting at here." Naruto said. "I'll be leaving now if you don't mind." Naruto stood up to leave the presence of the cage, but found the Kyuubi's red chakra flowing out of his cage and holding him in place.

**"You will be signing this contract."** The demon fox declared. **"And you will find it very useful."** The Kyuubi's chakra surrounded his host and swiftly took control of his movements. Forcing Naruto to bite his thumb, and sign a summoning contract scroll that floated from the cage, the Kyuubi grinned sinisterly. **"Summon me when you wake up, or I'll force my chakra into you system and make you do it with ****much**** more pain than you are feeling right now."**

Naruto glared at the fox biju within its cage. "Fine." He consented before escaping from the red chakra holding him in place and leaving the sewer for the peaceful prospect of a nights rest. "I'll just have to tame you myself."

Naruto woke up the next morning to the sound of the shower being turned on in the next room over. He groaned as he looked at a small clock provided with the room. 5 AM. Not the best time to wake up.

"Get up dobe." Sasuke's voice came from the window. Naruto looked at the Uchiha and saw that he was staring at the eastern horizon, where the sun's glow was just beginning to push back the dark night. "We've got to leave soon."

Naruto swung himself out of his bed and pulled his sleeping hat off. He stumbled into the bathroom to brush his teeth and splash some ice cold water in his face to wake himself up. He looked at his whisker marks and unruly blond hair in the mirror. _I'd better try that summoning thing before the fur-ball gets impatient._

With the door locked, Naruto bit his thumb and signed for the summoning jutsu. When the bathroom fan cleared the cloud of smoke, Naruto could see a small fox sitting on the floor, scratching its neck with one of its many flowing tails. "One…two…three…" Naruto counted the tails aloud. "Eight…nine. You're the Kyuubi aren't you?"

**"The one and only."** The fox replied. **"The only reason I'm so small is because of the chakra you put into the summoning. The more chakra, the larger I am. Quite simple really."**

"Alright, you've had your moment, now get back inside." Naruto commanded as he formed a seal. "Dismiss!"

Nothing happened as the Kyuubi continued to sit in front of the blond. **"Did I forget to mention that you have force me back in?" **He grinned wickedly. **"Silly me, must have slipped my mind."**

"I suppose that you want to roam around a bit." Naruto sighed.

**"Damn right baka." **The fox's insulting voice replied. **"I've been cramped up too long in that stupid cage."**

"You know what the others will say when they see you." Naruto stated as he moved to grab the demon fox.

**"They'll call me adorable and cute and want to pet and stroke me half to death." **The Kyuubi replied sullenly. **"The things I am most defiantly not."**

"You know dobe, I'd swear that you're talking to someone in there." Sasuke's voice filtered through the wooden door. "I'd hate to use a Katon jutsu on this exquisite piece of plywood, but we do need to go."

"Alright already, I'll be out in a second." Naruto said back at Sasuke through the door. Turning to the fox, he snatched one of his tails as said fox ran past him. "Alright you, get back inside."

At that instant, a very angry Sasuke, who blinked at the sight, knocked the door inwards. His first reaction was to activate his Sharingan, and then to pull a Kunai from his hip holster. "What the hell is that." He demanded, indicating the multi-tailed fox.

Naruto sighed, "Sasuke, meet Kyuubi, Kyuubi, meet Sasuke." The blond had switched his grip from a tail to the scruff of the demon fox's neck.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed at the sight. "That's the Kyuubi?" he looked at Naruto for confirmation. The blond nodded, causing the Uchiha to crack up laughing. "Alright Naruto, you can drop the henge on whatever animal that is, nice joke. The _fearsome_ Kyuubi is in reality, a pint-sized fox that looks like a stuffed animal."

**"I will not let you insolent Uchiha insult me like that." **He squirmed in Naruto's firm grip in an attempt to attack Sasuke. **"Just wait until I get my paws around your neck."**

Sasuke stared once again at the fox in amazement. "Then how the hell is it out of your seal?" he demanded.

"Summoning contract of a sort." Naruto replied. "Speaking of which, I nearly forgot to test this." He stuffed the extremely upset fox under one arm, while sealing with both hands and biting his thumb again. "Summoning Jutsu!" he called out and slammed his hand on the floor.

Then the smoke cleared, a small, yet capable toad stood at knee height next to its summoner. "Alright it works!" Naruto grinned.

"YO, Who are you?" The Toad asked. "Where is Jiraiya? Why did he summon me?"

Naruto glared at the toad. "I summoned you, now you may go." He formed a hand seal and de-summoned the toad, much to said creatures amazement.

**"I told you it would work."** The indignant fox said from under Naruto's arms. In his present form, he was too weak to escape from his host's grasp. **"Was there any doubt that is wouldn't?"**

"Like I said last night, you aren't the most trusted individual in the history of the world." Naruto's sharp blue eyes stared piercingly at the fox. "So yes, I did doubt you."

"The others are going to have a fit when the see him." Sasuke said rubbing his eyes after de-activating his bloodline limit.

The door swung inwards to reveal Tsunade standing with her hands on her hips. "What will we have a fit about?"

**"Me." **The Kyuubi replied for the boys as he used Naruto's momentary distraction to escape and walk towards the Slug Sannin. Tsunade's eyes narrowed at the sight. "Naruto…" she began threateningly.

"Oh, shit, let's get out of here Sasuke!" the blond ninja cried out as he scooped up his weapons, threw his shirt over one shoulder, while making a clone to grab the fox. The Uchiha didn't need any more reasons to jump out the window and onto the rooftops, followed closely by the two Narutos. An angry Tsunade was not the most pleasant person to deal with first-thing in the morning.

The Sannin stood at the open window watching the two boys jump from roof to roof until they were out of the village. "They have some explaining to do." She stated as she turned back towards Shizune and a sleepy Sakura. "And we have some traveling to do."

When Sasuke and Naruto were sure that Tsunade wasn't following them from the village, they slowed their break-neck speed and continued on their way at a quickened traveling speed: one which they could keep up for hours. The Kyuubi left them to return to his cage. He simply couldn't keep up with the ninja-to-be, so he left without a fight.

"What the hell was that all about?" Sasuke asked as he jumped from branch to branch.

"The Kyuubi forced me to signed a special summoning contract with him." Naruto replied as he kept pace beside Sasuke. "It hasn't disrupted my toad summoning, but the toad didn't know who I was. Kinda like the time I first summoned Gammabunta. He thought Jiraiya was the one who summoned him."

Sasuke stayed silent, and let the hours passe quickly. All too soon a small city came into view. It wasn't overly crowded, but it contained around five thousand citizens by Sasuke's estimate.

"Any ideas where he might be." Sasuke asked his partner as they overlooked the city from the tops of two trees around 800 meters from the outer houses.

"Again, he likes the hot springs for his perverted research, but after yesterday, I can't help but feel something's off with him." Naruto replied. "When I traveled with him, he would take any and every opportunity to view the local female population with as little clothing as possible."

"And he wasn't near any of the springs yesterday when he searched." Sasuke finished Naruto's train of thought. "So we look for the hotels?"

"It's a good place to start." Naruto replied. "Or we could flare our chakra and see if he comes to investigate. He left the town in a hurry around the time we entered."

"He might have sensed our chakra and assumed we were a threat." Sasuke added the flow.

"But he should have been curious to know who had the same amount of Chakra as a Sannin." Naruto stated, putting a halt to their conclusions and analysis. "The only reason he'd run without so much as a peak is if he thought it was Atasuski. They're enough to scare away any reasonable shinobi."

"He must have a reason to fear them. When I first found you with Itachi, he was confidant that he could take both my brother and his partner." Sasuke stated. "I don't think it's likely that he's met another jinchuriki, that is very unlikely. Shinobi villages tend to guard their jinchuriki very carefully."

"Maybe, but he never mentioned anything of a previous encounter with Atasuski when we went to retrieve Tsunade-baa-chan." Naruto said. "Maybe our return has already screwed up the past more than we realized."

"Well, we've already changed it by being on this mission dobe." Sasuke replied. "That is a possibility."

"Why don't we just try to mingle with the crowd while I have a bunch of clones guard the parameter." Naruto suggested. "We can draw him out of whatever building he is in, and if he tries to run, my clones can stop him."

Sasuke looked at the blond in mock amazement. "I didn't realize that you could actually come up with a half way decent plan dobe."

"That sure is a mean way to give a compliment." Naruto said sourly. "Am I correct in assuming that you agree with it?"

"Hn…" Sasuke replied. "Let's just get moving." Naruto grinned and created 50ish clones. All of them set off around the outside of the city, careful not to get too close to it.

The two boys jumped to the ground and entered the city through the gates as a normal pair of traveling shinobi would. This was the first time they had traveled alone on the mission, and the sight of two boys dressed as ninja, without forehead protectors on to identify their allegiance, attracted a lot of attention. People stared at them as they walked slowly through the streets. When they reached the center park, they finally looked behind at the way they had come. A small crowd of kids had assembled a dozen or so paces behind them.

"Who are you?" one of the tall boys asked. He looked to be in his mid teens and had some clearly defined muscles on his arms. From the way the other children stood around him, Sasuke and Naruto knew he was some sort of leader. "I think you're a bit to old to be playing ninja."

"Says the idiot with no sense of who a ninja is." Sasuke retorted calmly.

"Nice." Naruto whispered to the raven-haired boy next him. "Real smooth. Now we can't ask them about any ninja in the area."

"Shut it dobe." Sasuke replied in an undertone. "We can still beat it out of them."

"You really have a death wish don't you?" Another said. "Unlike you two, we've actually attended the ninja academy in the Hidden Village of the leaf. You're no match for us."

"When did you drop out?" Sasuke asked. "I don't remember any of you."

"Heh." A third, yet smaller boy said. "Why don't we beat you until you remember us.

"Fine by me." Sasuke replied. And settled into an advanced taijutsu stance. "I've been looking for some quick practice."

Naruto made five clones as soon as the boys charged them. In a mater of seconds, each and every kid from the city was lying on the ground nursing bruises, and in the case of a few unfortunate ones, broken bones.

"Sasuke, why did you have to pick a fight?" Naruto complained. "I really isn't fun beating up every idiot and weakling that gets in our way."

"I needed to vent some steam alright?" Sasuke replied. "I've been itching for action for days."

"Maybe next time you could do it on your own time." Naruto said tiredly. "In the meanwhile, we have some questions to ask these punks."

Naruto walked over the nearest victim of their battle and began to ask him questions about ninja in the city.

"Honest, really." He said pleadingly. "I haven't seen anyone who looks like a ninja here for a while."

"What about the old man that we asked you about?" Sasuke prompted.

"There are a lot of older people traveling through here to get to the hot springs in the next town over." He shrugged a little. "I really don't pay much attention to them."

"Fine, fine." Naruto said as he stood up. "Which way to the nearest hotel?" the boy pointed a finger down the street.

"About two blocks that way." He said, glad at the thought of finally getting rid of Naruto and Sasuke. The two boys then headed in the direction, and found a fairly expensive hotel. When the asked the receptionist about Jiraiya, they were turned away with a no. The rest of the hotels in the city were like that as well. The sun was directly over their heads when they took a break on the center park. They bought a light lunch and sat down on one of many park benches.

Predictably, Naruto had some cup ramen, while Sasuke settled for some pork buns and rice balls. "I can't believe that we can't find him." Sasuke stated, thoroughly frustrated. "Have none of your clones dispelled to tell us he's left the village?"

Naruto shook his head to say no as he slurped down some noodles. "I would have told you if they did."

"Damn…" Sasuke swore as he devoured another rice ball. Midway through a second rice ball, he had an epiphany. "Naruto, get that fox of yours to sniff the guy out."

"You know who he is right?" Naruto replied.

"Yes, but I don't think that name will be taken in passing around here." The Uchiha replied. "But he is a fox, and foxes have good smelling right?"

"I don't think he'd willingly agree." Naruto sighed. "We don't have anything with Ero-Sannin's scent on it even if he agreed."

"Watch your mouth kid." Came a voice from behind the ninja boys. "Who are you calling Ero-sannin like that?"

Naruto gagged as he heard the voice. "Ero-sannin! Don't sneak up on us like that!"

"Who're you calling perverted twerp?!" Jiraiya demanded as he brought a fist down on Naruto's head. Sasuke was now standing next to the toad Sannin with a Kunai held expertly by the older man's throat.

"I'd take a seat if I were you." Sasuke said dangerously. "I wouldn't want my hand to…_slip_…now would I?"

"Kid, you've got balls if you think you can beat a Sannin with a kunai." Jiraiya smiled and knocked the kunai out of Sasuke's hand with ease. He leapt over the bench so that Sasuke and Naruto could sit while he did his pose and introduction.

"Now why are you looking for me?" He asked frowning slightly.

**Alright!!! Longest chapter of the story!!!!! Nearly 5,000 words long!**

**I hope you enjoyed this nice long chapter, but don't get used to them! I don't have the time to write chapter this long on a regular basis. **

**Anyway, tell me how you liked this, especially the small Kyuubi.=)**

**As always…**

**READ AND REVIEW!!!!!**

**~Cyberviper42~**


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